Monday, February 10, 2014

Glow-in-the-dark dino quarters!

In 2004, researchers working in Nunavut uncovered the fossilized
remains of a mysterious prehistoric creature to bridge the evolutionary
gap between water and land.

Tiktaalik lived roughly 375 million years ago. It had the
gills, scales and fins of a fish, but the head of an amphibian: flat
with both eyes on top, and spiracles that suggest the presence of
rudimentary lungs.

What's more, Tiktaalik had extra-thick ribs, another
adaptation for animals that don't float in water and need extra support
against gravity while on land. It also had wrist and finger-like bone
structures inside its fins—precursors to actual limbs.

Experts believe Tiktaalik used these limb-fins to push itself
out of the shallow, fast-flowing water where it lived and crossed short
distances on land. It's a captivating, puzzle-packed creature that
will fuel the imagination of dino-detectives young and old alike!